Margao civic body berated for potential 45% hike in construction licence fees

November 5, 2023
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MARGAO: A group of residents of Margao on Saturday flayed the Margao Municipal Council for its decision to adopt the revised plinth area rates for construction licence fees which, “once implemented shall become an additional financial burden to the extent of 38-45%”.

Addressing reporters, Carlos Gracias, Aneil Alvares, Lalan Parsekar, Aziz Shah, and Sujata Parsekar, led by the convener of the Shadow Council for Margao, Savio Coutinho, demanded that the decision be rolled back. The adoption of the revised rates for construction licences would have cascading effects on the common people, they cautioned.

Explaining how the MMC’s move would exert an additional financial burden on construction-licence seekers, Coutinho said that licence fees for a 100 sq m residential house/flat were already very high at Rs 67,614, which will now rise to Rs 93,307. Similarly, 100 sq m commercial premises, which earlier had a licence fee of Rs 76,916, will now be charged Rs 1,11,530, he said.

Coutinho also pointed to several additional charges that will be imposed based on the amenities provided on the premises. “The provision of lifts, type of flooring, architectural features, and similar aspects have additional fees tagged to them, which could not only be a burden, but also a means of corruption,” he said. “Slowly but surely these rates would be applied for house tax calculations, thereby increasing the house tax manifold.”

The issue was intensely debated in the council meeting held on Friday, dividing the councillors. However, the council’s chairperson, Damodar Shirodkar, said that it was necessary to adopt the revised rates.

to save the council from any adverse remarks from the government’s audit team and to increase the revenue of the municipality.

  • Published On Nov 5, 2023 at 05:00 PM IST

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